Fire Hydrants

Summer is the perfect time to take a walking tour of the Catasauqua Fire Hydrants that were creatively painted by elementary school students. The 17 hydrants were painted by fourth graders from Sheckler Elementary School. The hydrants range from one honoring the branches of the military in front of the American Legion to another painted like a gum ball machine at Front and Bridge streets. The guide was created by Catasauqua Main Streets and is available as a PDF on the borough website at http://catasauquaborough.govoffice.com

Beginning Monday, April 7, South Whitehall township will start flushing fire hydrants, according to the township's website. Residents are advised that fire hydrant flushing is expected to continue between the hours of 8 a.m.-3 p.m. Monday through Friday through June, the website said. For a schedule of neighborhoods and streets affected by hydrant flushing, visit ww.southwhitehall.com.

Lower Macungie Commissioners will put $55,000 in next year's budget to run a water line and install fire hydrants at municipal buildings. The board agreed Thursday to pay a portion of the cost to extend a water line from Indian Creek Trailer Park, along Indian Creek Road and onto Brookside Road. This line will allow the township to put fire hydrants at its public works and maintenance building on Indian Creek. Hydrants on Brookside will service Dries Do-It Center hardware and lumber store and a 7.6-acre property owner Dale Dries hopes to develop.

Through Monday, June 10, South Whitehall Township fire hydrants will be flushed for annual maintenance by the Water Authority, according to the township's website. Hydrants will be flushed from 8 a.m.-3 p.m., weekly, Monday-Friday, to cycle through the water line system, the website said. Streets that will be affected by hydrant flushing on May 29 will include Buck Trail Road, Chestertown Road, Doe Trail Road, Duxbury Court, Jamestown Court, Manchester Road, Pawnee Court, Shelburne Court, Springhouse Road, Walbert Ave. and Wethersfield Drive, the website said.

Beginning Monday, April 7, South Whitehall township will start flushing fire hydrants, according to the township's website. Residents are advised that fire hydrant flushing is expected to continue between the hours of 8 a.m.-3 p.m. Monday through Friday through June, the website said. For a schedule of neighborhoods and streets affected by hydrant flushing, visit ww.southwhitehall.com.

BETHLEHEM Bethlehem firefighters will test fire hydrants between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. Monday and Tuesday north of Macada Road, from Linden Street west to the city line. Residents living in those areas are advised to check their water before use because there may be discoloration. The discoloration should clear after running cold tap water for several minutes.

by CHRISTINA M. PARKER, Special to The Morning Call | February 25, 1993

Fire hydrants for Panther Valley Elementary School in Nesquehoning are connected to a water pipe that borough officials say is too small to supply enough water pressure to fight a major fire. The 4-inch pipe will supply enough water to fight a fire but not enough to battle a big blaze, said Fire Commissioner Michael Kravelk. He said the hydrants should have been connected to an 8-inch pipe about 35 feet away from the present connection. While the wrong connection doesn't pose an emergency, he wants the proper connection made as soon as possible because children are involved.

Slatington has begun flushing water mains and fire hydrants throughout the water system. Flushing removes sedimentation in the lines and assures that hydrants will work in the event of fire. While flushing water mains would appear to conflict with the drought emergency issued by Gov. Ridge in September, the borough has been advised to do so by the state Department of Environmental Protection. Flushing operations will take place from 9 p.m. until midnight Mondays through Thursdays until Nov. 30 or until the lines are clear.

Allentown Mayor Ed Pawlowski violated a local ordinance that requires him to get City Council's permission to outsource work now done by city employees. Pawlowski spokesman Mike Moore acknowledged the misstep in a written statement Monday, saying the decision to outsource was not presented to council because the Department of Public Works was not aware of the requirement. The statement drew a sharp rebuke from council President Michael D'Amore, who accused the mayor of "willfully disregarding" the law and said he needs to be disciplined, though D'Amore stopped short of detailing what disciplinary options he has in mind.

Homeowners in the only Lower Macungie neighborhood without fire hydrants are seeking emergency water service. The effort comes one month after firefighters struggled to find water for a fire that eventually destroyed a home in the neighborhood. "They put the fire out ... one fire in 30 years," Lower Macungie Supervisor Robert E. Lee said in a meeting Thursday, after representatives from the neighborhood left. "I'll support anything they want to do ... [but] I think our fire department did a good job."

Lower Macungie Commissioners will put $55,000 in next year's budget to run a water line and install fire hydrants at municipal buildings. The board agreed Thursday to pay a portion of the cost to extend a water line from Indian Creek Trailer Park, along Indian Creek Road and onto Brookside Road. This line will allow the township to put fire hydrants at its public works and maintenance building on Indian Creek. Hydrants on Brookside will service Dries Do-It Center hardware and lumber store and a 7.6-acre property owner Dale Dries hopes to develop.

Summer is the perfect time to take a walking tour of the Catasauqua Fire Hydrants that were creatively painted by elementary school students. The 17 hydrants were painted by fourth graders from Sheckler Elementary School. The hydrants range from one honoring the branches of the military in front of the American Legion to another painted like a gum ball machine at Front and Bridge streets. The guide was created by Catasauqua Main Streets and is available as a PDF on the borough website at http://catasauquaborough.govoffice.com

The failure of a main water pump at Allentown's Mack Pool caused the city to close the pool Friday in the middle of a five-day heat wave, but the city is hoping to help residents beat the heat by opening the other pools for free Saturday. Besides free admission to city pools, the Allentown Fire Department will open up the hydrants around town to soak sweaty residents, in what it's calling "Operation Cool. " From 1 to 3 p.m. and 6 to 8 p.m., an engine will be at Roosevelt Park, at Saucon and Woodward streets, and another at Franklin Park, on the 200 block N. Franklin Street.

Lower Macungie taxpayers combine to pay roughly $140,000 annually to Lehigh County Authority for maintenance of the township's nearly 600 fire hydrants and associated costs. Township officials have long said they should have access to copies of those fire hydrant reports. Following ongoing conversations, officials at the Lehigh County Authority have agreed to provide the township with a quarterly list of inspected hydrants. The township pays about $35,000 per quarter or $140,000 annually to the authority for hydrant-related costs.

By Tracy Jordan and Frank Warner, Of The Morning Call | January 5, 2012

A 47-year-old Allentown man burned over 70 percent of his body when a vehicle he was working on in a Bethlehem Township garage caught fire yesterday morning has died, according to the Lehigh County coroner's office. Kenneth Mitchell of the 1200 block of Tacoma Street was pronounced dead at 6:15 p.m. Wednesday in Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest about 12 hours after a vehicle's gas tank exploded while he was working on it. Mitchell was working on the vehicle in a six-bay garage at 4011 Wilson Ave. in Bethlehem Township.

By Tracy Jordan and Frank Warner, Of The Morning Call | January 4, 2012

A man was burned badly as he worked on a vehicle Wednesday morning in a Bethlehem Township residential garage, a fire official said. "He was severely burned, pretty much from his head to his ankles," Nancy Run Fire Chief Jamie Hauze said. The man, who was not identified, was taken by Bethlehem Township Ambulance to Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest. The fire was reported about 6:25 a.m. at a six-car garage at 4011 Wilson St. It was under control in about 15 minutes and extinguished in about 30 minutes, Hauze said.

About 20 residents from Lark Court Condominiums appeared at Bethlehem City Council's Public Works Committee meeting last night to convince members that the fire hydrant fee they've been paying the last five years is unfair. A $264 annual fee is assessed on each of the 198 hydrants on private property within the city. John Talecki of Lark Court Condominium Association argued the fee is unfair because the city has access to Lark Court's hydrants to fight fires at nearby properties that don't contribute to the hydrant fee or the association.

Tom Rizzotto of the Allentown Water Department looks over some fire hydrants that will be auctioned at the city's municipal garage tomorrow at Queen City Airport. The city will also sellcars, vans, trucks, firefighter helmets and fire hose. The auction will begin at 5 p.m.

So it seems there are people who work for the city of Bethlehem who actually do know their way around the tighter streets in the city. Unfortunately, their only purpose is to remove chairs and sawhorses and recycle bins from the streets that they left practically untouched when week after week of snow and ice fell in January. Way to go, Bethlehem. Instead of sending these men out after the storm to clear out fire hydrants and help stranded residents, leave that up to the people who live on those streets; then come steal their chairs when the weather warms up. Matt Caltobiano Bethlehem

An admission by Allentown Mayor Ed Pawlowski that he violated a local ordinance that requires him to get City Council's permission to outsource work now done by city employees escalated Wednesday with council demanding to know how many times violations have occurred. "I know the mayor had knowledge of the ordinance and I can only conclude he deliberately violated this ordinance a number of times," council President Michael D'Amore said during a Human Resources Committee meeting.